ST. LOUIS — It's no secret that the days are getting shorter, but that will become much clearer in the next few weeks.
The days have been getting shorter since the Summer solstice on June 21, and on Thursday, St. Louis will have its last sunset at 6 p.m. or later until next March.
And if you loathe that time of year when the sun sets before you even start cooking dinner, we have some more bad news for you. The clocks fall back for the end of Daylight Saving Time on Sunday, so the sun will set Sunday night at 4:57. The days will continue to get shorter until the winter solstice on Dec. 21.
Here are a few things to do on Sunday when the clocks fall back.
1. Turn clocks back one hour
Don't forget to set your clocks back by one hour at 2 a.m. Sunday. In the digital age most clocks, including the ones on our smartphones, set themselves. But microwaves and ovens are on a short list of household appliances that will need a manual adjustment. It may be worth changing the times before going to bed on Saturday to mitigate any confusion first thing Sunday morning.
2. Replace smoke detector batteries
Officials generally use Daylight Saving Time as a reminder for homeowners to replace smoke detector batteries. No one wants to listen to the low-battery alarm chirp. Do your ears a favor and change the batteries now to ensure the smoke detector is working and doing its job to save your life.
3. Restock your emergency kit
There's no better time to prepare for a disaster than today because once a disaster strikes it's too late. The list of supplies is long. People need food, water, flashlights, and much more. Take advantage of the "extra" hour from Daylight Saving Time to make a preparedness plan and stock, or restock, your emergency kit.
With winter coming, you can stock up on winter-weather items like salt, shovels and scrapers before a winter storm sends prices skyrocketing.
4. Clean out the gutters
Autumn weather is back. Leaves have been falling for a few weeks and might be making a mess of your gutters as well. Our weather will only get worse as it gets closer to winter, so why not get it over with now?
5. Check furnace and air filters
Our homes collect plenty of dirt throughout the year. Take advantage of this reminder to check furnaces and replace air filters if necessary. Both should be checked at least once a year.